That is what friends are for
by Sambu
Summary: Trip is not dead. Things aren't as they seem to be. My idea on TATV and what happens after.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is the first and presently only story i have written for Star Trek: Enterprise. I wrote it a couple of years ago and only needs translating and a good ending to finish it. I like to know if there is interest in this story here or if i shouldn't bother translating it.

_**That is what friends are for**_

**Chapter 1**

They were on their way back to earth with Shran and his daughter still on board. They would leave in there shuttle when the entered the quadrant were but Earth and Andoria were in. The criminals pursuing Shran were far behind them or so they thought, they hadn't broken warp 2 yet and enterprise was currently going 3.5. Jon had invited Trip for a drink on the success of their mission and were so having a cognac in the mess hall and exchanging memories. This is when an explosion sounded. Bridge didn't know what was going on so Jon and Trip went to investigate and on their way they encountered the criminals they thought couldn't keep up with them. Jon not wanting Trip to come to any harm hit him unconscious and then convinced the criminals he would only cooperate if Trip wasn't harmed. He went to a maintenance cabin under the pretence that he would get Shran to come to them from there. He produced cables you never want to get together and a plasma explosion followed ravaging everything in its proximity and so also disabling the criminals. The shockwave that followed caused the guard that stayed behind with Trip to loose his balance and Trip to regain consciousness and overpower the guard who had dropped to the floor. Trip then stumbled to the cabin to see what caused this second explosion and soon found out what Jon had done, the criminals were dead or close to but so was he. Soon Phlox appeared on soon and they carried the captain to sickbay but to no avail, the explosion had been to close by.

The next day was the day of the conference, Trip and T'Pol were behind the stage and Trip would give the speech Jon was supposed to give. On the last day of the mission Enterprise had lost his captain, after surviving so many life and death encounters this was a huge blew to the crew and especially its senior officers. Trip felt it should have been him to have died instead of Jon, and if he had just reacted a little bit quicker it would have been the other way around indeed. Now it was Trip's duty to make sure the federation would go the right way and make it a success. He succeeded in making the conference a success even though he wasn't in the mood for it and had now been giving command over the new flagship of the fleet, the first to reach warp 8, the _Serantoga_. Part of the Enterprise crew would be joining him but Trip didn't know what to think of it, he hadn't wanted it to happen this way and wasn't sure if he could cope with his new responsibilities. Commander Malcolm Reed as second in command and chief tactical, Lieutenant Hoshi Sato communication, Lieutenant Travis Mayweater helmsman, Phlox chief medical, they could have gone to different ships and maybe get more responsibilities and make more of their career but decided to stick together as friends. Lieutenant Rick Johnson was now chief science while T'Pol became the Vulcan ambassador on Earth. Commander Anna Hess was the new chief engineer. Of course was the _Serantoga_ larger and much more spacious built then the _Enterprise_ which meant that they had room for more crew but also more recreation and storage so the ship was able to provide its self for longer periods and make farther space travel possible. Now that they had regained there mission of exploration Trip hoped to honor his former captain and friend who would have wanted that.

**A/N: Should i continue? Let me know in a review.**


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: No reviews? It will have to get better then that or I might just post the story as I have it now in Dutch. I don't mind if you don't like the story I would like your opinion anyway. If you do like this story please let me know and I will continue posting._

_Just a warning there are things happening in this story that i'm sure are considered impossible even if it is science fiction but it takes to much trouble to change it._

Chapter 2

It took two more months for the _Serantoga_ to be completed and prepared for its long trip. And the crew needed to be fully manned, even though there were no aliens in the command staff there were a number of them below that from numerous world that participated in the federation. When they finally departed space dock and Trip felt the full burden of command on his shoulders he noticed the difficulties of being in command, having to make judgment calls without conferring with your superiors, he was truly alone. He did invite people to his private mess, but the going between Trip and his chief engineer weren't always as smooth since Trip tended to think more as an engineer then a captain, and Rick the new chief science sometimes joined. Mostly it was just Trip and Malcolm sometimes joined by Hoshi and Travis. The crew was beginning to get used to each other and the interspecies cooperation went relatively smoothly.

Two months later they had mapped and gathered data on comets, star formations and some uninhabitable planets but know they encountered their first inhabited planet of this mission. This planet was not yet known to the federation and a scan showed that the population seemed to have an advanced technology looked sort of humanoid and where in the process of developing warp drive they had just broken the warp 2 barrier. When they hailed the planet they were invited to come take a look, they weren't the first off world visitors.

**REVIEW please!**


	3. Chapter 3

Ch.3

The away team would consist of Trip, Malcolm, Rick and Hoshi. The Saruset appeared to be very friendly people who liked to get to know other species. There were a lot of things they could trait and this planet was a good spot to grant the crew some shore leave divided in small groups. Visiting another civilized world and being able to relax was good for the moral of the crew. A week later they were on their way again. Being the captain of Starfleet's flagship was a responsible function. They weren't the only ones out there anymore and there were rules but it still gave Trip a lesson on how he should sensor what he was saying and not let his emotions and morals control him. He now understood the dilemmas about separating being captain from being a friend. Trip and Jon had often clashed concerning his actions, after a reprimand Trip had often wondered how his friend could do such a thing but now he knew it was because of that friendship. He would have been in a lot more trouble for his actions if he hadn't had the protection of friendship, how much he would give for a chance to acknowledge that. He missed that friendship now he didn't have any close friendships with his crew which often resulted in him being alone in his quarters during off hours.

A few weeks later they arrived at a system with two M-class planets, one of them was inhabited the other was not. The inhabited planet was populated by a pre-warp society so they couldn't risk dropping in for a visit and contaminate their culture. While the crew took turns of shore leave on the uninhabited planet the sensor data gathered from the other planet were analyzed. There were some strange readings. Eventually curiosity won out and looking like natives the away team blended in with the society. To Malcolm's dismay Trip insisted on being a part of it so the away team consisted of Trip, Hoshi, Rick and Mestral, a Vulcan from Malcolm's security squad. They landed in a remote area and arriving at a small town split into pairs, Rick and Hoshi as one pair and Trip and his 'bodyguard' as the other. They would get together again a few hours later. While Rick and Hoshi learned more about the society; Trip and Mestral located the source of their strange readings. With nobody in the neighborhood and the building looking deserted they decided to take a look inside. But once inside all their equipment stopped working and a force field blocked their way out.


End file.
